We are just a lucky lucky family- and we must have been pretty good this year! Santa was good to all of us-

 he saw the slide 1st~ whoooooaaaa

 Big Brother C under those piles of presents

Let's get to opening those Big Sister C!

my very own cell phone??

Notice his sideways footing- LOL! those pj's were a little too big-

  just lounging around in new clothes-  no biggie....

 what's this?? This thing is awesome! it shoots balls out with air- while K tries to stick them back in- he loves it- and so do the dogs!

love my new car!

look ma! no hands!

his fleece pj's got a little hot- but he is still working the 1/2 pj look! LOL!

what a day! now off to pack and get ready for our "Out of town" holiday celebration- that's up next!

I know- i knoooooow- don't even say it-



it's late- but it's here- we had so much going on this holiday season- I just couldn't keep up with everything. So I will start with the 1st half of our "Hometown Holidays" then we'll do post #2 with the "Out of town Holidays"



We really did have a great time! I sooo love the holidays- putting up decorations, day dreaming about what to buy everyone, cooking yummy treats, and getting to spend quality time with the fam!! It's all great!



Papa L came in town Christmas Eve-eve and we headed up to Home Field Grill for some food and games.

Now that C is an "official" basketball team player- I am pretty sure she put a whipping on PapaL...

yup..

The next day the boys ran around through the madness and got us a delicious Christmas dinner! We had prime rib, green chili cheese potatoes, collard greens, and a strawberry and spinach salad- ALL soooo good!- we opened a couple of presents- then we settled in and waited for Santa to come.

Opening his 1st present-

yay!!! Toy Story Lego's- just what she wanted!

Yay!! Star Wars Lego's- just what he wanted!!

what is it?? open it open it open it!!

wow- he loves it!

So while the older kids went off to work on putting together their Lego's- K decided to work on a bigger puzzle- organizing the container cabinet... good luck buddy!

Good night!

Ok- so this idea originated from The McMommy Chronicles- love her blog and I have been waiting for the perfect time to give this little "experiement" a try. The opportunity arose- when I got to work from home this week.



Working from home during the holiday season is no joke- we worked hard- and this is what we worked on. Enjoy!



OK- this is the original.







We let the C's watch it ONE time- and this is what we got!









LOL!! hahaaha- I see more of us wanting to try this over the weekend. It's just too much fun!







* and just a small disclaimer- when I work from home- I really do work- no lie- it's just that.... oh hell- I am not going to explain myself all that much!*

Have you seen this game show? It's SO fun! Guy Fieri- yes the cook- or the Diners, Dive Ins, and Dives guy- is the host. How he went from food to game show hosts- I don't know. I know a lot of things- but this one I just don't have the answer to.

Anyhow- Ciara turned *gasp* 12- twelve- (or in her mind 12teen- I am pretty sure she already thinks she is a teenager) We decided to have a Minute to Win It game night for her birthday party. We had a blast.



So on the show- they come up with all different kinds of challenges- "blueprints" -and the contestants have 60 sec to complete the blueprint to win money- like a MILLION dollars BIG money~! They list all the challenges on the website so contestants can practice before they come on the show.



We changed the rules a little bit-

1. no practice before game night

2. no money for prizes (booooo)



We still had a blast and it was funny watching the kids do silly things- like try to get an Oreo cookie from their forehead to their mouth without using hands.

The prizes- filled with millions of dollars- LOL! yea right!

The food- Ciara's favorites- Mexican Pinwheels

Stuffed Mushrooms- yummy!

Chicken Enchilada dip-

and queso- of course-

GAME #1 BLUEPRINT-

Place 1 Oreo cookie on your forehead. Wiggle the cookie into your mouth with out the use of your hands. (on the show- you have to do 3 in 60 seconds)

ok go!

Hard to do when you are laughing so hard!

No hands!

Get it- get it! almost there!

Winner!!

GAME #2 BLUEPRINT-

Blow up the balloon and use your air from the balloon to knock pyramid of cups OFF the table. All cups must be blown off the table.

I thought some of the kids were going to pass out for sure!

Especially Caleb- he was turning red!

Go girls go!

GAME #3 BLUEPRINT-

Tie a yo-yo around pant loop on the back. Players must swing yo-yo to knock over pyramid of cups on table.

This was one was hard- and dangerous!

watchout for flying yo-yo's

Wade needed protection-

dizzy kids everywhere- LOL!

GAME #4 BLUEPRINT-

Place M&Ms on butter knife and lift it to your mouth and eat the M&Ms- this one was too easy

(on the show you have to make a little lever system- around your ears using string- but we didnt' get into all that)

Focus-

Present time!

New shades

My name is Awesome!

Watchout- new bike!

Yay- onto the cake....

wait a sec.... she is NOT turning 21-

ahhh.... much better-

With a new bike- comes new riders-

the girls-Ciara and her Nanny-

We had a great time. Ciara was so excited that her Nanny got to be there to enjoy the fun! She sure is growing up too fast. But I love every minute- she is so smart, athletic and good at just about everything she puts her mind to. I am proud of the young lady that she is- Happy birthday! We love you!!